


One Third Better

by screamoffkey



Category: Andi Mack (TV)
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant, Coming Out, Love Confessions, M/M, Secret Crush, Swearing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-29
Updated: 2019-01-08
Packaged: 2019-09-02 02:06:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16777480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/screamoffkey/pseuds/screamoffkey
Summary: After the gun incident, Andi and Buffy are furious that TJ put Cyrus in danger. Before TJ can talk to Cyrus, he knows that he'll have to go through them first.Or, a fic where TJ comes out to the Good Hair Crew, one person at a time.





	1. Andi

Andi waddled slowly out of the Hobby Lobby, weighed down by the massive amount of supplies she was hauling out of the store. She knew Bex, Cece, and even Ham would disapprove of her going to Hobby Lobby of all places, so she had to go alone, leaving her to make the eight-block journey back to her house without any assistance. _It’s just so cheap! Look at all the stuff I got!_ She justified to the nagging voice in her head.

Sure, she had only meant to buy a yard of fabric, but she got… distracted. Now, in either hand she was lugging half-gallon buckets full of pastel paint, her shoulders slouched from the tote bag full of fabrics and pins she had picked out, and a pack of markers was clenched between her teeth.

She had made it an impressive ten feet before she heard someone call out to her, she glanced over her shoulder nervously, fearing that her problematic shopping habits had been exposed. When she realized who it was, she tensed up. She gave a sandy-haired boy a disinterested once over before she continued on.

“Need some help with that?” A smirking TJ Kippen said as he caught up to her on the sidewalk, matching her slow pace as he walked beside her.

“Fuck off, TJ.” She called out through clenched teeth, not making eye contact.

TJ winced at the hostile reaction, awkwardly running a hand through his hair. He tried to shake it off with a soft laugh, but the confidence in his voice had been quickly stripped.

“I’m guessing you’re mad at me?”

She let the markers drop out of her mouth into her bag, then turned to look at him, putting on her most sarcastically saccharine smile.

“Why would I possibly be mad at you? Because you bullied one of my best friends for a year, or because you almost got the other killed?”

“…I’m guessing you have something to do with why Cyrus isn’t talking to me, then.”

“Yeah, TJ. Maybe Cyrus isn’t talking to you because I told him not to… Or _maybe_ it’s because you _pointed a fucking gun at him_.

Bristling at the venom in her voice, TJ only managed to squeak out quietly

“…that’s not what happened.”

“I don’t _want_ your explanation. I just want you to never talk me, or to Buffy, or to Cyrus. Ever again.”

“Andi, please, just-”

But it was too late, Andi had mustered all the strength her slim shoulders could provide to trudge past him as fast as she could. It was pointless to go after her, he knew. It was pointless to try anything at this point; he was certain. TJ felt hot tears well up in his eyes. _Fuck_ , he cursed to himself as he heard a soft sob escape his lips. He hated crying, but he just felt so stupid right now, his body couldn’t help itself.

The sound stopped Andi dead in her tracks

For all her efforts, Andi was absolutely horrid at being mean. Despite being furious at TJ for putting Cyrus in danger, she had exhausted her capacity for coldness. Besides, she couldn’t just leave a guy crying on the sidewalk, could she? So, with a huff, she dropped her paint cans and spun back around to face him.

“Help me carry all this junk back to Andi Shack… and then we can talk.”

\--

The walk back to Andi Shack was quiet, as TJ tried to compose himself. It wasn’t like Andi was dying to start small talk, so they were both thankful for the silence.

When they had finally got to Andi Shack, and TJ swung the thin wood door behind him, was when he felt the pressure build up. He set Andi’s tote bag down, and aimlessly began unpacking the mixed contents of the giant bag. He wasn’t sure what he was going to say to justify himself to Andi, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to take kindly to any excuse less than extraordinary.

“So.” She said sharply, her accusatory brown-eyed glare locked with his nervous green. “What’s your great excuse this time, TJ?”

“Andi, I’m sorry.”

“That’s not enough. And you know it.”

“No, it’s just… I’m sorry about everything, about what I’m about to say.”

This was enough to pique the dark-haired girl’s interest. She, gave him a nod to go on, and perched herself carefully on a countertop.

TJ told himself to breathe. He could do that much. He told himself not to cry, which was going… less than stellar so far. He told himself to just spit it out, to tell Andi the secret that he’d been holding for far too long. Nope, that was too hard, all of it was too hard. And all of a sudden, he was crying and suffocating and blowing his one chance to ever talk to Cyrus ever again. Through his tears, he barely managed to look Andi in the eyes.

“I like Cyrus, OK.” He blurted, in between soft sobs. “Like, _like him like him_. Like… _gay,_ Andi.” He choked on the word gay, it sounded unfamiliar out loud, out of his own mouth. It was something he had only voiced in his mind before this point.

He saw Andi gaping, though she didn’t interrupt his rambling.

“And he doesn’t like me back because I’m and idiot. _God_ , I’m so fucking stupid! I just wanted him to meet my friends, so he could start hanging out with us, you know? Because I wanted him to see me be cool and funny and nice, and shit. Something more than just a dumbass he has to be nice to. But, I told Reed and Lester that I really wanted them to make a good impression, and I guess they thought it’d be a good idea to… I was just so excited that Cyrus was going to be there I didn’t even think to make sure they didn’t do something stupid. _I swear to God I didn’t know, Andi_. I didn’t even touch it. And now, he’s never going to talk to me again, and it hurts more than anything. He even thought that I could be a good person. But, I guess that I’m too much of a fuck up for a guy like that.”

A part of TJ couldn’t believe he had just said that. To Andi Mack, none the less. He wasn’t used to wearing his heart on his sleeve, but he didn’t regret what he said.

He aimlessly fiddled with a strip of silver ribbon he had plucked from the bag, “I was even planning on telling him too, you know” He smiled, a bitter one filled with heartbreak. “Sometime before the end of the year. But I was so worried it would mess up our friendship. I guess I fucking did that just fine on my own.”

There was a long silence while Andi waited, making sure he was done speaking. When he looked up at her, she closed her gaping mouth, and tried to figure out what to say.

“TJ… Wow, I had always just thought you were just this awful person who tricked Cyrus into being friends with you, but you… actually have emotions.”

TJ grimaced at the… compliment? It was something about the genuine shock in her voice that made TJ want to throw up. He really had been awful to her friends, so she had no reason to believe he was anything less than super villain.

Andi realized immediately that this was not the right thing to say to a crying boy who had just come out to her, and she started correcting herself frantically.

“I mean! TJ, it’s great that you opened up to me. I’m really proud of you… seriously. And, I promise, Cyrus will forgive you; you guys will be friends again.”

A short pause, then.

“But… do you forgive me?”

There was hesitancy in his voice, like it was a total toss-up in his mind. Andi slid off the counter to walk over to the boy. She gave TJ a hug, which he readily accepted, trying to stop his tears from falling again.

“Of course. It wasn’t your fault. You didn’t know.”

\--

After that, TJ stuck around for a bit. Aimlessly helping Andi put her shopping spree away into the crannies of Andi Shack, meticulously pulling off each Hobby Lobby tag before stuffing paintbrushes and markers into different color-coded cubbies. After a few minutes of silence, Andi felt bold enough to start talking.

“So… When did you start liking him?”

“What?”

“Cyrus, I mean.”

“Well, no shit. Who else would you mean.”

“So...?”

“It’s not like he even likes me back, anyways.”

“That’s not the question, TJ.”

TJ thought about it. Or, rather pretended to think about it, so it didn’t seem like he had agonized over that exact question for months. Which he had, of course.

“Let’s see… It was more and more over time. But, I think it started a little bit when I first met him. Remember? When Driscoll agreed to tutor me; and, in exchange, I had to get Underdog that-”

A soft gasp cut his sentence short. He had been rifling through the bottom of Andi’s bag, putting away the stray bits and bobbles that had fallen to the bottom, when he picked up one glittering enamel pin that Andi had bought for her denim jacket.

“muffin?” he whispered. Of all the pins he could have grabbed, somehow the one in his hands was in the shape of a sparkling chocolate muffin.

Andi’s eyes went wide, and a smile took over her face as she shrieked, “THE UNIVERSE!” as a flustered TJ tried his best not to take this as a sign.

After an hour or so more of organizing and chatting, and a little bit of bracelet making: of trying to make up for all the time that TJ and Andi were destined to hate each other, TJ finally grabbed his bag and started to leave, when Andi piped up.

“It’s not over yet, you know… I’m the nicer of two walls keeping Cyrus from talking to you.”

TJ anxiously fiddled with the half-completed friendship bracelet he’d struggled to make, he nervously chuckled.

“Driscoll’s not going to be _that_ pissed, is she?”

“Oh, you’re _totally_ screwed. Buffy’s going to literally kill you if you try to talk to her.”

“Yeah, uh, I was kind of hoping you could help out with that part.”

“Hell no! Buffy and I aren’t exactly on the best terms right now; and, me being ‘Team TJ’ probably isn’t going to help that.” She sourly chuckled.

TJ barked out a laugh at that too. It was a bittersweet one, but it was the first laugh they had allowed themselves to share the whole evening. These past few weeks- hell, his entire life, he always felt so alone. And for once, while chuckling with his newfound friend in a weird shed at her grandma’s house about a girl who was fond of neither of them at the moment, everything started to feel a little more normal. As he left Andi Shack, in the fading sunlight of the late afternoon, TJ Kippen started to feel approximately one third better.


	2. Buffy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry its been forever! I had some major writer's block on One Third Better, but I powered through... so here's chapter 2! A lil angstier than the first chapter lol
> 
> Also in this fic the Bandi Walker drama wasn't written out of the show, and they are still PISSED at each other, so be prepared. I really escalated that drama bc I feel like it wasn't lived to its fullest potential on the show

The remainder of the weekend, Andi and TJ started spending a lot more time together. Without Buffy by her side, Andi had a lot of free time in her schedule for new friends. TJ for his part, had agreed to come along, supposing he had time to kill until he could build up the nerve to talk to Buffy.

So, it was only natural that they’d ended up roaming a pop-up farmers market together, idly munching on some blueberries they’d bought. Meanderingly aimlessly through the booths set up on Jackson street, because they had nothing better to do, and no one better to do it with. In their short tenure as friends, TJ had quickly learned a lot about Andi Mack: from her complicated family life, to her complicated love life to her little quirks, there was certainly a lot to learn. Like, for instance, she had a magical ability to make crafts seemingly appear out of nowhere. They hadn’t so much as passed a young florist selling daffodils before TJ felt the weight of a crown of the little yellow flowers anoint his head. And, before even a few hours had passed, he found himself being used as a mannequin for bracelets and headbands that Andi had somehow managed to create without TJ noticing. He couldn’t hold back a laugh at the pure absurdity of it all.

“ _How_ do you manage to make all of this while we’re walking?”

Andi stopped mid stride, pretending to think. “TJ, it’s _my thing_. I don’t question how you get balls into hoops, and you shouldn’t question how I just made three different charm bracelets for you to try on.”

She playfully jabbed him in the side as she joked, “Besides… you _definitely_ could use a fashion upgrade, if we’re being honest.”

And so, with a pout of mock offense, he quickly learned to stop questioning the logic of the matter, and just start appreciating the wonderous powers of his new friend.

They’d been so busy with their fashion show, that TJ and Andi didn’t even notice when they bumped straight into a glowering Buffy Discroll, who had a stoic face on, but was clearly fuming with rage given the fire burning in her eyes.

She was carrying a basketball and a bag of the vegan granola bars from 3 booths down, and it looked like she was headed to a team practice. She didn’t even so much as look at TJ when she addressed the pair.

“Hi Andi!” Her tone was sarcastic and dripping with venom. “First Amber, now him? I didn’t realize you were making it a priority to befriend every snake in Shady Side… You know, I think Mrs. Fisher gave Jonah a D on his English paper last week: maybe you should make her your BFF next!”

TJ gulped. He knew Driscoll hated _him,_ but he didn’t realize how bad her relationship with Andi was right now. He watched the fire in Buffy’s glare spread and ignite in Andi’s light brown eyes like a wild fire.

“ _That’s so_ f _unny!!_ I just thought I was following your lead, with the whole ‘digging people up from each other’s past’ thing. You’re kind of an expert on _that_ aren’t you, Buffy?” The same cold tone she had given TJ just a few days before was now chilling the ears of Buffy.

Buffy scoffed. “If Walker ever pulls out _a handgun_ , I’ll be sure to reevaluate my choice in guys. I suggest you use the same criteria, Andi Mack.” She shoved passed the two of them in the narrow street path, making sure to take time to shoulder check TJ as she walked by.

“Have fun with Ted Cruz! I’ll be spending my time with people who don’t let 14 year-olds play with fire arms.” She waved goodbye dismissively over her shoulder.

Buffy wadded her curly hair into a messy ponytail, as she tried to regain composure. She wasn’t a mean person. She repeated that thought like a mantra in her head as she fought to push down the guilt of being stone-cold to her ex-friend. After all, even when TJ was being a total dick to her, Buffy had never been anything but civil. But, this wasn’t about her; it was about Cyrus, and her unwavering loyalty to him. She didn’t _want_ to hate TJ Kippen again - they had already come so far in their short time as non-enemies - but she was willing to do anything to protect Cyrus, who was prone to giving second chances to people who didn’t deserve a first. And, she genuinely couldn’t believe Andi was willing to talk to TJ after everything he put Cyrus through! Despite their current differences, she really thought they were on the same page about this; she had hoped that it would be the thing that they could use to start to become friends again.

But that certainly wasn’t going to happen if Andi was OK being around TJ Kippen.

“I’m sorry about that.” Andi said, looking up at the tall boy with guilty eyes after the anger had extinguished. “You aren’t just some pawn I’m using to get back at Buffy, I swear.”

TJ gave her a guilt-ridden grimace that was quickly becoming his signature expression, “Don’t be. I’m the one who screwed you over.”

He felt like the tiara of flowers that was perched on his head was wilting as his own mood started to deflate. With Andi, he had allowed himself to indulge in the delusion that everything would be OK in the long run, but seeing Buffy in person, feeling how mad she was about everything that had happened… well, it made him realize exactly how unlikely that was.

Andi fiddled with the flowers in her hair nervously, desperately trying to figure out how to lighten the mood. With a huff, she conceded that she couldn’t escape the topic. “TJ you should follow her. It’s only going to get worse over time.”

He nodded, knowing that she was right, but his sneakers stayed glued to the cobblestone boulevard. His mind froze, any functional capacity fully replaced with his brain firing off every panic alarm in his body. He felt a light shove from Andi in the direction of the girl who had stormed off, and his feet found themselves stumbling back towards their middle school.

A couple of minutes of stumbled jogging later, he’d caught up with Buffy, who was pushing open the heavy glass doors of their school. It was a Sunday, but the school was open for sports teams and the theatre clubs to practice and rehearse. So, when TJ tapped an unsuspecting Buffy on the shoulder, they were by no means alone; a handful nosey middle schoolers who were hanging posters or gossiping in the hallways perked theirs ears at the basketball captains’ conversation.

Buffy barely swiveled her head a degree before realizing who it was, and ramped up her walking pace two-fold.

“Fuck off, TJ.”

“That’s what Andi said too.”

She spun around, glaring daggers at the boy.

“Well I’m _clearly_ not Andi Mack, so don’t expect the same results. But, while we’re at it: stay _the fuck_ away from her too. Why don’t you try to get someone else’s best friends killed for once? Because I’m _so_ over it.”

Buffy smirked while she talked, a sign of assuredness that this conversation would not be continuing for a second longer than she wanted it to. She never lost control, never equivocated in her opinions, and certainly TJ Kippen would not prove himself an exception to her better judgement. It was something about Buffy’s unwavering resolution that provoked the worst in TJ; it made him desperate to instigate a conflict where one didn’t need to be, to find folly in her perfection. This feeling of animosity had been suppressed for a while, but he felt it stirring up in rebellion to his better judgement.

It was like muscle memory; TJ Kippen the Douchebag arose from his slumber.

“Hey, don’t blame me for ruining your friendships, Driscoll. I’m not the one who started a fight with Andi for you, or the one who forced you try to cut Cyrus out of your life a couple months back.” He practically spat at the girl, any apology in his eyes completely erased.

She wouldn’t break eye contact. It was a challenge at this point. “What is _that_ supposed to mean, TJ?”

“I’m just saying, Driscoll. I’m not the only fuck up here. You’ve screw yourself with the few friends you have. And that holier-than-thou attitude definitely isn’t helping you make any more.”

This wasn’t going how he had wanted it to, at all. He wanted to admit his mistakes, to be honest with Buffy about everything, and to genuinely ask for her forgiveness, but… it was so much harder with Buffy than it had been with Andi. Andi Mack’s personality was exceptionally conducive to teary-eyed confessions and forgiveness… Buffy, well, not so much. He had to turn this conversation around fast.

Buffy looked at him in wide-eyed shock, visibly hurt. He had managed to crack her defenses for the first time… and he felt like shit about it. TJ came back to reality, pushed down the part of him that wanted to keep arguing, and scrambled to fix the mess he had just gotten himself into.

“Buffy, wait! I’m sorry for saying that. I’m here to try to make amends but… I keep ruining everything. I just want to talk.”

It was like he had stepped on a bear trap, because all at once, as if something snapped back into place, the shred of vulnerability that Buffy had revealed had been swapped with a cold, unforgiving glare once more.

“That’s what you do TJ. _You ruin things_. That’s _all_ you do. All we’ve ever done is try to be nice to you, and you always fuck it up. I’m not letting Cyrus get hurt because he’s too caring to run away from the impending doom of Hurricane Kippen” She turned to walk away again, but TJ matched her stride, and walked in pursuit.

It wasn’t just the insult that hurt. It was the fact that he knew that she genuinely meant every single word of it. It stung to the core of who he was, and cut short the potential of anything he thought he could grow to be. And, it made what little constitution he had mustered dissolve from her cutting remarks. Tears broke through the iron damn of his long lashes and glittered at the corners of his eyes.

“That’s not fair.’’ He was losing control of his emotions. His voice waivered and cracked as he tried to fight the accusation.

“But, it’s true. Isn’t it?” She wouldn’t even pity him with a glance as she kept walking.

“I would never let anything bad happen to Cyrus.”

“That’s bullshit, and deep down you know it is.”

“Buffy, look-”

“TJ you’re wasting your time. At this point, nothing can convince me that you care about anything other than yourself.” She cut him off. It was clear he wasn’t going to be able to get a word in.

“Buffy, I-

“What I don’t get is, why Cyrus? Did you just spot him on that swing set and think, ‘Oh boy he looks like an easy life to fuck over’?”

“ **Buffy, I’m in love with him!** ”

For all of about ten seconds, a shocked Buffy Driscoll stopped dead in her tracks. Gaping at an equally shocked TJ Kippen. He hadn’t meant to yell that. He hadn’t meant to say that at all. But between the emotions, and the arguing and that being the one thing that has been at the front of his brain for the past few months, it managed to force its way out of his throat and into the hallway littered with students at full volume. He looked around, realizing what he had said, and looking at everyone who heard it. Shocked sixth graders stared at the tall jock bug-eyed, the gossiping girls from before didn’t dare speak a word. He felt stupid; he felt ridiculous.

Suddenly, TJ Kippen was sprinting down the hallway far away from the entirety of the situation.

He left an astonished Buffy staring at the small crowd that had accumulated around her, as she tried to fathom what had previously been entirely unfathomable:

_TJ loves Cyrus_

And, as he raced down the hallway of the middle school, his lungs burning and heart pounding, frantically trying to find a place where no one could see the panicked tears that would soon be streaking his face, TJ Kippen felt awful, once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did u catch the part of the fic where I literally said it was easier to write a Tandi coming out than a Tuffy one lmaooo??
> 
> Theres going to be a Buffy pt, 2 coming out at some point! And then, we get to the actual Tyrus part of the fic lmaooo
> 
> hope y'all liked it! Lemme know how u feel abt this chapter

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed it!! It was so much longer than I was planning, and yet here we are.
> 
> tbh, I'm not sure if I'm going to continue this fic, but maybe i will! I love platonic Tuffy, and want to continue to the actual Tyrus part, but this is already one of the longest fics I've ever written.


End file.
